Working Paper: NBER ID: w28780
Authors: Alejandro J. Ganimian; Karthik Muralidharan; Christopher R. Walters
Abstract: We use a large-scale randomized experiment to study the impact of augmenting staffing in the world’s largest public early childhood program: India’s Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS). Adding a half-time worker doubled net preschool instructional time and led to 0.29σ and 0.46σ increases in math and language test scores after 18 months for children who remained enrolled in the program. Rates of stunting and severe malnutrition were also lower in the treatment group. A cost-benefit analysis suggests that the benefits of augmenting ICDS staffing are likely to significantly exceed its costs even under conservative assumptions.
Keywords: Early Childhood Development; Public Policy; India; Randomized Experiment
JEL Codes: C93; I21; I22; I25; O15
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| benefits of the intervention (O22) | exceed its costs (D61) |
| addition of a halftime facilitator to anganwadi centers (I29) | increased preschool instructional time (A21) |
| increased preschool instructional time (A21) | significant improvements in child learning outcomes (I24) |
| addition of a halftime facilitator to anganwadi centers (I29) | significant improvements in child learning outcomes (I24) |
| addition of a halftime facilitator to anganwadi centers (I29) | positively impacted child nutrition (I24) |
| addition of a halftime facilitator to anganwadi centers (I29) | reduction in severe malnutrition (F35) |
| addition of a halftime facilitator to anganwadi centers (I29) | reduction in stunting (O15) |